5-year-old killed, toddler critically injured in head-on crash in Beach Park

A 5-year-old Zion boy was killed, a 2-year-old boy was critically injured and two others were hurt in a head-on traffic crash Tuesday in Beach Park.

The 5-year-old was identified as Sy'Mere McKnight by the Lake County Coroner's Office.

A Chevrolet Malibu and a GMC Sierra had collided head-on about 5 p.m. on Green Bay Road just north of Hart Street, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Deputy Chief Chris Covelli.

A preliminary investigation showed the crash happened when the Malibu, driven by a 24-year-old Waukegan man, was illegally passing other southbound vehicles on Green Bay Road by driving in the northbound lanes, the sheriff’s office reported.

The driver of the Sierra, a 57-year-old Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, man, was seriously injured and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment, authorities said.

The Malibu’s driver also was seriously injured and had to be extricated by firefighters. A 2-year-old boy who had been on the Malibu driver's lap also was critically injured and taken to Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago, officials said.

Before being taken to a hospital, the Malibu driver told deputies no one else was in the vehicle, according to Covelli. However, deputies later discovered the 5-year-old boy beneath debris behind the driver's seat, he said.

The boy was pronounced dead in the emergency room at Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan, according to the coroner’s office.

Preliminary findings suggest neither child was properly secured in a child safety seat at the time of the crash, according to Covelli.

The crash remains under investigation. No charges have been filed.